Retractable clothesline



NOV. 11, 1969 ABRAHAM RETRACTABLE CLOTHESLINE Filed 001,- 5. 1967 United States Patent Office 3,477,660 Patented Nov. 11, 1969 I 3,477,660 RETRACTABLE CLOTHESLINE Garnett Abraham, 215 Manor Road, Staten Island, N.Y. 10314 Filed Oct. 5, 1967, Ser. No. 673,162 Int.Cl. B65h75/38;D06f 53/02 U.S. Cl. 242-100.1 I 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to an improved retractable clothesline apparatus for use in confined areas.

More specifically, this invention relates to a retractable clothesline which is dispensed from a spring-loaded roller mounted on a wall and stretched across a portion of a room, such as a bathroom, to permit clothes to be dried periodically. Conventional clothesline which are designed for use in confined areas, such as spanning the distance between two opposite walls of a room, generally consists of non-self-adjustable spring-loaded rollers which dispense a set of cords under tension to any desired location in the room. These clotheslines, however, suffer from the disadvantage in that they require a locking mechanism attached to the roller to prevent the weight of the clothes from causing the lines to sag at their center. More-. over, the conventional retractable clotheslines generally utilize unsightly, heavy and expensive mechanisms which project noticeably from the supporting wall.

Accordingly, the present invention overcomes many of the above-described disadvantages of conventional clotheslines by providing a decoratively constructed, lightweight, self-adjusting, multi-line structure which may be dispensed across a room of any size, or between walls of any distance apart, and adjusted so that there is no sag due to the weight of the clothes that may be hung on the lines. The clothesline, according to the invention, dispenses a plurality of clotheslines which are selfequalizing from a spring-loaded roller for temporary connection to the opposite wall of the room. After the lines are fully extended, the slack in the line may be removed by a single adjustment, leaving no remaining cord on the roller, so that the lines may be utilized to carry clothes of any weight without sagging. The inventive clothesline is simply constructed, utilizing readily available materials and may be produced in'quantity at relatively low cost. Moreover, the clothesline may be easily installed against the wall of any room by any person using ordinary hand tools.

It is therefore an object according to the present invention to provide an improved clothesline for use be tween two walls and which uses a plurality of lines which are self-adjusting when fully extended.

It is another object according to the present invention to provide an improved clothesline for use in a confined area which is useful and decorative to the room in which it is used.

It is still a further object according to the present invention to provide an improved clothesline which is simple in design, easy to manufacture and reliable in operation.

' Other objects and features of thepresent invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying". drawings which disclose an embodiment of the present invention. It should be understood, however, that the drawings are designed for the purpose of illustration only.

In the drawings wherein similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several. views: FIG. 1 is a plan-view, partly in perspective, of the clothesline according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side plan-view, partly in cross-section, of the clothesline of FIG. 1; and p 3 FIG. 3 illustrates an additional side view of the clothes line shown in its position when not in use.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 there is shown the inventive clothesline apparatus in its fully extended position.

The apparatus includes a single cord 11 which is slideably interleaved across roller 12 at eyelets 31 at two approximately equidistant positions 11a and 11b, as well as being slideably interleaved in three places across cover member 17.

Roller 12 resembles a conventional window-shade rollerwhich includes a keyed pin 21 pivotably connected at one end and adapted to engage slotted bracket 14.

Key pin 21 is coupled to a conventional coil spring 30,

' secured within roller 12, and provides retraction of lines 11 around the circumference of roller 12 when the clothesline apparatus is not in use. Axial pin 20, secured to the opposite end of roller 12, is pivotably engaged to a corresponding bracket 13. Brackets 13 and 14 are secured against wall 16 by means of fasteners 15, as shown in detail in FIG. 3.'In addition, spacer-blocks 24 are inserted intermediate brackets 13 and 14 and wall 16 in order to provide an air 'gap 23 adjacent to the top of the bracket. Cover member 17 includes a flat shelf region 18 along its upper surface as well as integrally formed flange 22 at the edge of shelf portion 18. When the clothesline has been folded into its closed position, cover member 17 completely surrounds and protects roller I 12 against wall 16. As illustrated in FIG. 3, flange 22 of cover member 17 engages into recess 23 in order to provide support for cover member 17 over roller 12. Cover member 17 also includes a pair of hooks 19 secured adjacent to each of its ends and adapted to engage a pair of correspondingly-spaced-apart hooks or eyelets which may be secured in a wall opposite to wall 16.

The clothesline apparatus according to the invention operates as follows:

After pin 20 of roller 12 is engaged into its corresponding pivot hole in bracket 13, a. winding key 26, secured to the end of key pin 21, is twisted a few turns in a direction opposite to the rotational of roller 12. This applies an initial pro-winding spring tension to coil spring 3-0. Key pin 21 is then inserted into its corresponding slot in bracket 14. Cover member 17 may then be disengaged from slots 23 behind brackets 13 and 14 so as to unwind cord 11 while applying additional tension to spring 30. When cover member 17 has been fully extended so that books 19 engage eye'lets 20 at the wall opposite to wall 16 there may be a few additional turns of cord 11 remaining on roller 12. It is obvious that the placement of heavy clothes over cords 11 may overcome the tension of coil spring 30 to cause the additional turns of cord 11 wrapped around roller 12 to play out and create an undesirable sag in the clothesline. Cord 11 has been slideably inserted through cover member 17 and roller 12 to permit the user to take up the additional slack in the line so that no additional turns of line 11 will remain on roller 12 when the clothesline apparatus has been fully extended to its opposite wall. One end of line 11 is tied to form a knot 11d adjacent to one of the holes in cover plate 17. Cord 11 has been interlaced through roller 12 and cover member 17 in a manner similar to that found with respect to a shoe lace so that the user may remove the slack in the cord by pulling on end Hz: to cause the cord to slip through positions 11a, 11b, and 110 until no further turns of cord 11 remain on roller 12 as shown in FIG. 1. The surplus cord at end 110 may then be tied, cut off, or stored within cover member 17.

The roller may also be stretched out full length without tension on the spring in order to enable the user to adjust the line cord to its maximum tension. The cord may then be rolled up before tension is applied to roller spring 30.

When the clothesline apparatus is no longer in use it may be released from eyelets 20 and rewound around roller 12 by the action of coil spring 30 until cover member 17 engages wall 16. Cover member 17 may be constructed from a decorative plastic or metal to enhance the appe'arance of the clothesline apparatus after it has been put away. The upper surface 18 of cover member 17 may be utilized as a shelf storage area for supporting various household articles. The initial tension applied to coil spring 30 will maintain a constant tension on cord 11 while the clothesline apparatus is being stored to prevent the cord from becoming entangled. While the clothesline apparatus, according to the invention, has been shown with only four lines, it is obvious that by extending the length of roller 12 and cover member 17 additional lines may be provided to accommodate the needs of the user.

The clothesline may also be easily removed from brackets 14 and 24, and reassembled at another wall on a corresponding set of brackets, or put into storage until needed.

What is claimed is:

1. A retractable clothesline dispensing a single cord for spanning between two walls comprising:

a roller pivotably supported against one of the walls and having said cord slidably interlaced along its circumference,

a longitudinal cover member for receiving the ends of said cord and adapted for support against the opposite wall,

a recoil spring coupled to said roller for retracting said cord around said roller when said cover member is released from the opposite wall, and

means for slidably retaining portions of said cord against said cover member and roller so that the tension in said cord may be adjusted to a maximum by pulling on one end of said cord and permitting said cord portions to slidably pass through portions ofsaid roller and cover member until all of the cord slack has been removed.

2. The clothesline as recited in claim 1 wherein said cover member additionally comprises a longitudinal shelf inte'grally formed within the body of said cover member for receiving the storage of household articles and the like.

3. The clothesline as recited in claim 1 wherein said roller slideably retaining means comprises a plurality of screw eyes secured to the circumference of said roller along a straight line parallel to its axis.

4. The clothesline as recited in claim 3 wherein said cover member retaining means comprises a plurality of eyelets secured through the body of said cover.

5. The clothesline as recited in claim 4 wherein said cover member includes at least two hooks secured to its outer surface for engagement with said outer wall.

6. The clothesline as recited in claim 5 additionally comprising a winding key secured to one end of said roller pivots to permit prewinding of said recoil spring.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,206,174 7/1940 Falk 242100.l X 2,449,379 9/1948 Hencir 211-l19'.15 2,481,638 9/1949 Borup 2l1-1l9.1 X 2,865,514 12/1958 Goodman 211-1l9.l5 2,914,188 11/1959 Hansen et al. 211-1 19.15 3,173,548 3/1965 Hesener 211-119.15

FOREIGN PATENTS 639,729 6/ 1928 France.

1,254,439 1/1961 France.

MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner WERNER H. SCHROEDER, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 211-11903, 119.18 

